T247

Lineage

Henry Bird of St Marys Rotherhithe was born in 1695 and died in 1757.

He was the brother of Elias Bird of Roehampton Park, Sheriff of Surrey 1744, died in 1767.

He was also the brother of Edward Bird Lieut., obit on 26 or 23 February 1718,  hanged for pinking a waiter.

They were the children of Henry Bird and Elizabeth nee Fitzgerald.

He claimed descent from Bird of Broughton Hall.

(Dictionary Note: to pink is to pierce with a rapier or the like; stab.)

Part of 268

Bird-Byrd-Byrde
In a self bound volume of the history of the families of Cumberland and Westmorland, printed about 1700 is an account of the owners of Broughton Hall in Cumberland.

Henry, descent of Bird Oswald a Dane who founded his home on the Great Wall about AD800 (a Viking) married about 1164 Joan Teasdale, heiress of Broughton Hall.

Several pages in the book deals with the family genealogy, trees are given. Quarrels between the Hall and the castle, especially during the time of the celebrated Countess, owner of the castle which ended on the Bird or Byrds having to pay a token fine in kind or in money to the Countess. (Bird Oswald is still marked in maps of the Great Wall.)

After being in possession of Broughton Hall for 500 years the history ceases abruptly. Ten sons fought for King Charles, the family plate was melted down, 8 or 9 sons were killed.

My father, rev Frederick Louis Byrde told me that no Byrde should ever allow people to say that Charles II was ungenerous or mean. He granted 3 considerable estates to them in recognition of their services to the Stuarts.

1. Land in London from Oxford Street to part of Berkley Square – Bird Street which leads out of Oxford Street is the only survival of the transaction. The law suit between Bird and I suppose Grosvenor (who was not at that time Duke of Westminster) lasted 100 years – papers about the case are in the British Museum. The money ran short and also a vital paper was found to be missing.
2. Land in Devonshire (I forget the name) only 3 daughters were left to the Bird or Byrde then. Called the three heiresses – each took her portion into her husband’s family.
3. Abbey lands in Norfolk or Suffolk, ‘no place attached’. The lands had been taken by Henry VIII. The land ceased (to) belong to the family – reason obscure.

Elizabeth Hicks.
In the wars between the French and the English in America the family of Hicks moved from Virginia. Red Indians tomahawked the parents, two sons and two daughters, Elizabeth 10 years old – said to be beautiful, with beautiful hair, was spared. The chief put her into the care of his chief squaw. Before the move a Captain Gilmore had offered Elizabeth’s father £500 if he would keep her safely with him until his return as he wished to marry her when she was old enough. 1 brother Hicks escaped when the family was killed off.

During the two years that Elizabeth was with the Indians she hoped that her brother would rescue her. A Henry Bird, a Captain with Wolf at Quebec heard of her, he and another officer captured her from the Indians.

Henry kept Elizabeth shut up in a house at Detroit Canada in the care of a lady for 2 years.

He married her there when she was 14 years. She rode ponies and milked cows when with the Red Indians and her imprisonment was terrible. She kept a diary which unfortunately was burnt – the spelling was shocking and her sentences illegible.

Two sons were born to Elizabeth and Henry in Canada, from one is descended Admiral Byrde. Birds are mentioned in the Creevy or Creecy papers, the lead Montreal now stands on what belonged to Henry, who sold it before its value was realised. Several other children were born to Elizabeth at Goytrey house in Monmouthshire, where she insisted on milking the cows.

A son or grandson of hers was one of the Prince regent’s gay set and lost a great deal, the Abbey lands may have been paid for a gambling debt.

Joshua Reynolds was a friend of one of the sons and painted their mother at Goytrey.

De Fer – at the time of the French Revolution De Fer and her brother Pierre escaped from France to Kent in a fishing boat. The rest of the family were guillotined.

A Captain Henry Bird stationed at Canterbury fell in love with the French girl who was teaching French to live. Pierre returned to France to see about the family estate and was never heard of again. Henry and ? were married in the Crypt of Canterbury Cathedral. When stationed at Windsor the daughters of ? and Henry were (w Private) – as is. The daughters of George III. One gave, I think it was Adelaide Bird a carved ivory knife with a steel blade – probably Italian; this was given to me by my father, William Byrde.

The christian names of the children have now Frederick and Louis amongst the Augustus, Henrietta etc and Charles etc in the family genealogies.

Bird or Byrde spelt either way were great soldiers, undistinguished – not one became a general. They fought in the thirty years war, the wars of the Austrian succession. Peninsular war, Napoleonic wars, one was at Waterloo.

A boy of 18 was drowned at the battle of the Nile, China wars. On his return from China a Col. Henry Byrde bought land in Ceylon – he brought from China a great quantity of porcelain, bedroom and table and drawing room china. This was all marked with the family coat of arms in England. Most was sold after the death of my grandfather, Colonel Henry Louis Byrde, JP, deputy Lieutenant of Monmouthshire. He went back to the old spelling of Byrde. A brother of his, I think a Charles was wounded in the Crimea war. He was the youngest Major. He went to Ceylon to plant on some of the family estate.

My grandmother would not allow any of her sons to go into the Army. My father and his brother became Clerics. Richard was headmaster of All Hallows Devon.

Note: when I sang in a concert in Penrith Cumbria in ’98 the Penrith newspaper said “one of the Byrde’s of Broughton Hall which had been in the family for 500 years”. Cumbria had a long memory. The celebrated Lord Chancellor took his title from “Broughton” when he lived at Broughton Hall.

T238

Durrands

Frances Maria Durrand married in 1804 to Henry Bird Capt., 87^th Regt., and 5^th Regt..

Children:

Frances Maria born 1811

Henry Charles born 1815 married Rebecca Mais

Frederick born 1816 married Christiana Guipy

Louis George Morgan born 1819

Louisa Sophia born 1821

T183

Henry Charles Bird son of Col Bird and Frances Bird

Born at Gosport 7^th December 1815

Rebecca Mais d/o Charles and Elizabeth born Kingsdown Bristol on 10^th December 1810 married at St Peter’s Church Colombo Ceylon on 5^th February 1837 

Children:

Henry 3/12/1837 bap Kandy 4/3/37

Charles 17/6/1839 bap Kandy 14/7/39

Daughter 22/10/1840 died 27^th/10/1840 – unbaptised born Kandy

Frederick Louis 28/1/1842 bap 27/2/1842

Richard Augustus 4/3/1844 bap 24/3/1844

Francis Wm 20/6/1846 b August 1846

Annie Elizabeth 16/2/1853 bap 20/3/1853

T11

This is a letter from Aunt Louise to an unknown person.

My great grandfather Henry Bird, merchant of Plymouth, now called Devonport residing at The Grove, Plymton St Mary,  trading with Constantinople married Elizabeth Briggs, her brother, (page damaged) resided with his wife and two daughters, Juliet and Maria Arnold at Ridgway near Plymton.

The daughter lived to be over 80 and died on the same day. His maiden sister, known as “Aunt Biggy” lived at The Grove with her widowed sister, Mr Henry Bird (my great grandmother and Mrs Samuel Bird.)

Henry and Elizabeth Bird had Henry who married Elizabeth Hicks, Elizabeth, (called Betsy) who married William Hayward Winstone.

Samuel who married Dorothy, who married William Symons of Chaddlewood. Henry had Henry, Henrietta, Joan, Hariett, Maria, Lucy, Sally or Selina, Fanny, George, Georgina, Charlotte, Louisa, born November 1800.

Elizabeth married a widower with (page damaged) afterwards Mr Curtis taking the name of Hayward.

Louisa married late in life, Captain Sykes.

Lucy married Colonel Foster.

Joan who went abroad – her one and only child born and died at the age of 6 at Oldbury Court.

Henrietta had no children.

Dorothy had William (Seymour,) George Henry who died young, Mary Elizabeth married Henry Salter

Dorothy married George Strode of Newnham Park.

Elizabeth’s children were Henry George William, Henrietta, Dora, Milly.

Elizabeth’s children were Georgina Strode, Florence, Sidney.

His name and that of his children were Hayward only but he came into the Oldbury property and took the name of Winstone before his marriage. My aunts only child who died at the age of 6 was Henrietta Hayward Winstone, she was named after her uncle (my grandfather). Mr Winstone’s son died abroad.

The daughter was Albinia who married Captain Curtis, vicar of Billou between Bristol and Bath. On the death of her father she came into the Quedgley property near Gloucester which he had inherited from his uncle Hayward and she became Mrs Curtis Hayward (her husband was dead) she was the mother of my mother’s friend and Miss Hayward (my godmother) Mrs Harry (aunt Bessie’s godmother.)

Mrs Peters and Mrs Symons, her sons were John Curtis Hayward who succeeded the Quedgley property saving his mother’s life twice, she and her sister lived at Quedgley till the house got too full, his son William John Hayward is now master of Quedgley, the other son of Mr Curtis Hayward was the Rev’d Winstone Hayward who was Rector of a Somerset parish for many years. He was living when I left. I have not heard from him since.

When my great aunt and uncle Winstone had Quedgley they made it their summer residence and rented No. 1 Bedford Street Bath their town house where they generally resided with my mother and aunt Louisa whom they had adopted. One or more of their older sisters to be introduced into Bath “Society,” of which they were at the very top, that was all that the Bird’s ever had to do with Bath.

Aunt Winstone died there April 18th 1837 and was buried by her children in the family vault under Stapleton Church, her husband was buried besides his first wife in the Hayward family vault at Quedgley. I have the coat of arms of both their families, engraved on seals.

The Bird family house was The Grove Plymstow near Plymouth where my great grandmother lived after her husband’s death and her sister Mrs Biggs and my great uncle Sam’s widow lived with her and all died there and are buried in Plymstow churchyard where many others be. I have seen their monuments, their brother Major Biggs lived also in Plymstow with his two daughters, Maria and Juliet. My mother took me to see them when I was about 15, they were over 80 then and both died on the same day a few years afterwards.

You will have to study this, to get it into your head, the paper will help you to fix the generations. I would like you to know your relations, my dear mother used to talk to me about them till I seemed to know them all which neither of the other cared to do and as your father makes a muddle, ask me anything you like.

With much love to you all,

Your loving Aunt Louisa.

I found this was overweight so finished the genealogy which I enclose.